taphole

Large ladles in the steelmaking industry may use slide gates below the taphole.

Once the pig iron and slag has been tapped, the taphole is again plugged with refractory clay.

One drawing shows a silver foundry with an Indian operating a bellows and a Spaniard closing a taphole.

He is constantly putting in new taps and lines, lugging heavy coils of tubing and support wire and his gas-powered taphole drill.

These furnaces have a taphole that passes vertically through the hearth and shell, and is set off-centre in the narrow "nose" of the egg-shaped hearth.

Once a "taphole" is drilled through the refractory clay plug, liquid iron and slag flow down a trough through a "skimmer" opening, separating the iron and slag.

During and after tapping, the furnace is "turned around": the slag door is cleaned of solidified slag, repairs may take place, and electrodes are inspected for damage or lengthened through the addition of new segments; the taphole is filled with sand at the completion of tapping.